Last Minute Holidays

i was sitting pretty, thinking i had finished all my holiday knitting and was really enjoying working on the elizabeth zimmerman green sweater for myself when my husband turned to me and asked what i had made for his mother! 5 days before christmas!!! i could have killed him - i specifically said i wasn't going to make anything for her this time - i had already made the hourglass sweater for her for mother's day. i really thought this time it would be a store bought gift. but the laziness of not wanting to deal with the stores and a huge snowstorm won out and searched my stash of magazines and yarn to find something fast. vogue holiday had a cute lace beret pattern for fingering weight yarn - and i have more of that than anything else. perfect! and it only took 2 days! here it is:

and on ravelry.

i have made a little bit of progress on "the green sweater" - one sleeve almost done. i have to be honest, i am losing a little bit of interest. and i have a little bit of a problem with the sleeve - it decreased very fast and is pretty narrow. i really, really don't want to rip back though. trying to decide what to do...

Steeking

as i mentioned in my last post, my current project is the elizabeth zimmerman green sweater that i am making out of elsebeth lavold silky wool. this week i got up to the steeking part. i spent much of my time researching how to secure the stitches and eventually decided to go with the crochet method. (mostly because i am not secure enough in my sewing skills to attempt sewing such a stretchy piece of fabric). many thanks to eunny jang's online tutorial!

so here we go! before cutting:

a before cutting close up:

cutting - eeks!!! i definitely needed a drink after!:

but after cutting look at how neat it is:

i sewed down the crochet edge inside, knit up the stitches and started on the sleeve:

The true color of the yarn is closer to the blue pictures.

all in all it worked really well. i don't like how i sewed down the edges so i will be redoing those. also, it took a really, really long time. much longer than if i had just knit separate pieces and sewn them together. i don't know if i would use a steek for a solid color sweater again. besides not having to purl, count rows or piece together, i don't know if there is an upside? if you know of any other reason - please share!!!

normally, i would be knitting on this sweater like crazy and have it done by the end of this week but my husband sprung on me the fact that he never bought his mother a christmas gift. so now i am rushing to get a pretty lace beret done by friday with some stash sock yarn! - thank god for stash yarn and my habit of never throwing out a vogue knitting or interweave!!

Holiday Knitting Done!

i can't believe i finished all my holiday knitting so early! i have even started a project for myself - but more about that later. as for the presents, my list was

seamless hybrid for my brother - done

seamless hybrid for my brother in law - done

little scarf for mother in law - decided not to do

little scarf for mother - done

norah gaughn tank for my sister - done

socks for my brother's girlfriend - done

something for dad?!? - decided not to do

cth sweater for niece - done

baby surprise jacket for niece - done

ok - so i decided not to do everything - but i think i got a lot done. two men's sweaters!!!! now for some pictures (with links to ravelry for details, of course)...

the little scarf for my mom. i made from some handspun from guanaco. my friend - hellomello - made it and i had just one skein. i thought this was the perfect use and my mom loves it.

the norah gaughn tank for my sister. i used one of my favorite noro colorways - silk garden sock. it isn't my favorite thing i've made but if anyone can wear it, my sister can.

socks for my brother's girlfriend. i made one last summer and just knocked out the other one in a few days!

cornelia tuttle hamilton sweater for my older niece. i had made this sweater for h years ago and it still fits him! i love the pattern, such a quick knit! this one is made from my all time favorite noro silk garden colorway. and no, i did not cut out the green - the new dye lot just has a lot less! - for those of you familiar with noro color #87...

a baby surprise jacket for my younger niece. what can i say - love the bsj and of course, favorite color!

since i finished all those presents, i thought it was a good time to start a project for myself. the brand new elizabeth zimmerman pattern came out and i am not embarrassed to say i bought the pattern 5 minutes after i got the email! yes, i am talking about the infamous elizabeth zimmerman green sweater. i'm making it from elsebeth lavold silky wool. this is my first steeking project and i am terrified. in truth, i am writing this post now to avoid getting to the steeking part. here it is on ravelry - but i will be posting more pictures as i move along with the process... please send all knitting prayers this way!

some big news - my favorite yarn store - brooklyn general - now has online shopping! i also think i may be teaching a class at downtown yarns in manhattan in january - more details later!!!

Holiday Hybrids

i have been so busy lately. too much going on in this house - including a tree falling on our car, eeks!!!! i have been getting some knitting done though. have been totally feeling the holiday crunch. of course, i took on too much and now feel like i can't get it all done.

here is the list:

seamless hybrid for my brother - done

seamless hybrid for my brother in law - done

little scarf for mother in law

little scarf for mother

norah gaughn tank for my sister - almost done

socks for brother's girlfriend - one done

something for dad?!?

cth sweater for niece - needs a little finishing

baby surprise jacket for niece - needs buttons and two seams sewn.

ok - i guess that looks doable - i hope...

i gave the boys their seamless hybrids on thanksgiving since they were also their birthday presents. the fit is perfect! here they are on ravelry. i think they like them - what do you think?

promise to post any progress this weekend!!!

Summer Knitting Wrap Up

i really didn't think that i got a lot of knitting done this summer - but as i was putting the projects on my ravelry page they added up. there are a lot of little goodies to share - so here are the photos with links to ravelry so you can read about them in more detail - if you'd like!

the baby bog for e - this really deserves more of an explanation but e broke her arm this week and we have just been so tired over here that i just don't have the energy :( the good news is it fits over the cast!

h's star wars sweater - love, love, love!!!!! - also probably deserves more explanation... i will try to blog about these two another time.

a little t-shirt for a good friend's daughter - i think she looks awesome and seems to love it.

another february baby sweater for e:

herringbone rib socks:

cashmere glittens - perfect for iphone using:

that's it for now. right now i'm working on a whole bunch of holiday presents and even have some mostly done. also trying to get in some spinning time - i bought a ton of fiber this summer!! hope to get some pictures up soon :)

i know my explanations were pretty brief - so feel free to email me if you want to know more.

until next time - happy knitting!

Yay Handspun!

there really isn't anything more to say!

from this:

to this:

yeah, yeah - i know, could use some blocking...

Quick Projects

the heat of summer makes me want to just knit lots of quick projects. i haven't been writing about it that much - but i've got some stuff ready to show off.

e has been a freak for yo gabba gabba, so i thought it would be cute to make her a foofa - she's pink and happy... i told h of my plan and he immediately requested his favorite, plex - a magic robot. here they are - foofa and plex:

i'm quite proud. kept a picture of them on my phone and just referenced it as i knit - i think they came out cute and the kids are huge fans!

i had been wanting to make the whisper cardigan from interweave's spring issue for awhile. when i realized it was my brother's girlfriend's birthday i had found the perfect reason.

it is made from yummy malabrigo lace - you can get all the info on ravelry.

another project that i am quite proud of is my recycled pucker from norah gaughn. a few winters ago, i had made a rowan sweater out of some noro cash island. i loved the yarn but the sweater was huge and i could never wear it. i had used around 20 skeins of it, too! so for the pucker i just knit directly from the old sweater instead of frogging the whole thing.

i got this lovely little short sleeve sweater out of just the cowl and sleeves of the old sweater. i can't wait to wear it this fall and i think i can get another whole sweater out of the front and back.

A June Post?

i realized that i hadn't been posting in a while (even though i'm not really sure if anyone reads this) so i thought i would try to get something up for june...  i have been pretty productive - i've just been busy with the kids and haven't had the chance update.

first up is the amazing pie are square shawl that i made for my mother's 60th birthday.  it is made from the most luxurious cashmere from colourmart.  i used four different lace patterns and carried them over to the front.  if you are looking for more info - ravel it :)

and mom, if you are reading this - how about hooking me up with some better shots.

here is the most amazing little t-shirt for e.  i was able to use up some rainbow colored koigu from my stash and finished it in 2 days.  doesn't she look adorable?

i also finished the cutest little dress for e but it was a test knit i did for my friend and i'm not sure if i can publish any info on it yet - i promise a picture as soon as i get the ok.

i've also been doing some spinning and i've been trying to get those pictures up on flickr as soon as i can.  there are now links to my sets on the right - you can probably keep up with my knitting faster there than my posting :(    

i'm trying to only spin for projects - otherwise i could see myself ending up with a whole bunch of single skeins.  right now i'm working on a baby bog for e made out of some awesome alpaca/merino batts i bought from spinknitandlife on etsy - they are amazing!  definitely check out her stuff.

that's it for now - i'll try to update more often from now on :)

A New Purchase

i know i said i wasn't going to do it until both kids are in school but.... i bought a spinning wheel - a little ladybug!  i love it, it is so cute and i think i am really going to like spinning.  but it is definitely going to take quite a bit of practice...

here is a shot of my first skein:

i washed it to set it and will take another shot after i ball it up.  i feel like my four old after he gets a new truck!!!!

since i last posted i have a bunch of finished objects - here they are:

a clapotis for my mom for mother's day.  you can get all the details on ravelry.

a blinged out tank for myself.  details here.

some napkins for my sister's mother-in-law for mother's day. 

a cute little dress for e out of some fabulous japanese fabric.

some pants for e out of more fabulous japanese fabric.

and finally some progress on the pi are square shawl.

Smocking!!!

i have just discovered the wonderful world of smocking - what a great way to make a cute little girl dress, impress everyone, in under an hour!!  heather ross, the author of weekend sewing, came to brooklyn general to do a demo.  i wasn't planning on going but i am glad i did.  i never would have tried it - but she showed how easy it was!  here are the first smock dresses to come off my trusty little necchi:

this one was for my niece.  the fabric is a little japanese floral from purl patchwork with ribbon from brooklyn general.

this one was for my 4 year old son's future wife ;) - she picked out the fabric from brooklyn general and i picked out the matching ribbon.

i'm really happy how they turned out and see a lot more of them in my future!

on the knitting front - i have been making a lot of progress on my mother's day presents.

an hourglass sweater for my mother-in-law.  made out of some great manos silk blend.  it will pill like crazy, but how wonderful to work with and feels super soft.  all the details are here.

a clapotis for my mom - a little more than half done.  i had some noro silk garden sock left from my sister's chevron sweater and thought this was the perfect project for it.  ravel all the details.

and here is a picture of b in the finished tomten, as promised.  i love it on him and he wears it all the time!

i think i am ready to start working on some adult sewing projects. i bought some amazing vintage fabric and am going to attempt the summer shirt from weekend sewing - stay tuned!